The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for information processing and to a program storage medium for storing a program of information processing. More particularly, the invention relates to an apparatus and a method for information processing and a program storage medium for use with a device that displays thumbnail images for reference purposes.
Gaining widespread acceptance today are techniques whereby a tuner incorporated in a personal computer receives video and audio signals from television broadcasting stations before converting the received signals into appropriate digital data and recording them to a storage medium such as a hard disk so that the received images and sounds may later be played back as needed.
Unlike conventional systems that use videotapes, the recently-spreading setup in which the personal computer is used to record and play back programs broadcast by TV stations takes little time in rewinding or fast forwarding recordings to be played back. That is, desired scenes can be accessed and viewed with virtually no lapse of time. Users need only refer to thumbnail images displayed on a screen when searching for preferred scenes represented thereby.
One problem with such thumbnail images, however, is that they are generated only when scene changes take place. It follows that frequent scene changes produce overlapping thumbnail images while the absence of changing scenes prompts no thumbnail image generation. This often makes it difficult for users to find the scenes they want.